1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a connector mounting structure for mounting a connector at a specified mounting position of a mating member.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electrical component used, for example, in an automatic transmission or the like of an automotive vehicle includes a connector and a support for loosely movably supporting the connector. The connector is mounted at a specified mounting position of a mating member by assembling the electrical component with the mating member (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,189,101). An operation of mounting such an electrical component needs to be performed carefully so that an axial center position of the connector is not displaced from the specified mounting position. In this regard, since the connector is supported for loose movement relative to the support in the above-described electrical component, the mounting operation can be performed while the axial center of the connector is held at a specified position by absorbing the displacement.
The constant loose movable support of the connector relative to the support in the above-described electrical component, complicates efforts to align the connector with the specified mounting position before mounting the connector at the specified position. However, if the connector is fixed so as not to be loosely movable relative to the supporting member, there is a likelihood that an excessive force is exerted to the connector since no displacement of the connector is permitted in the course of mounting the connector.
Furthermore, since the connector is supported to be loosely movable relative to the bracket in the above-described connector mounting structure, the connector is likely to incline with respect to a proper mounting direction before the mounting of the connector is started. Therefore it is difficult to direct the axial center of the connector towards the mounting hole. On the contrary, if loose movements of the connector relative to the bracket are prevented, a mounting position cannot be adjusted finely upon mounting another part on the bracket after mounting the connector. Thus, it is desirable for the bracket to be loosely movable relative to the connector to enable a fine adjustment of the mounting position after the connector is mounted into the mount hole.
The present invention was developed in view of the above situation and an object thereof is to improve overall operability of an operation of mounting a connector at a specified position.